inciting subversion of state power Inciting subversion of state power () is a crime under the law of the People's Republic of China. It is article 105, paragraph 2 of the 1997 revision of the People's Republic of China's Penal Code. The protest lasted 2 hours.

Protest aims

Initial call

The anonymous call for a 'Jasmine revolution' in China's major cities was made online, first on the Boxun, run by overseas dissidents, and then on Twitter. The initial call for protest began on 19 February 2011 when 12 to 13 cities were suggested.Dw-world.de.
Dw-world.de
" ''网传"茉莉花革命"，中国当局全线戒备 .'' Retrieved on 21 February 2011. The Boxun.com appeal called for protests to take place each weekend, arguing that "sustained action will show the Chinese government that its people expect accountability and transparency that doesn't exist under the current one-party system."

Protest strategy and tactics

The slogans of the protest were: * 我们要食物、我们要工作、我们要住房 * 我们要公平、我们要正义 * 启动政治改革、结束一党專政 (or 停止一党專政) * 开放报禁、新闻自由 *"自由万岁、民主万岁" * "Terminate one-party rule" On 2 March, organisers declared a three-stage strategy. The first stage would take "a few weeks, a couple of months, a year or even longer"; the second stage would include "holding a jasmine flower and singmobile phones or music players to play he folk song'' Such a Beautiful Jasmine''". Organisers declared the third stage as "when the street-walking revolution is irreversible"; it would involve people criticising the government openly and without fear. The media reported a vindication by protest organisers on 2 March saying, "Now China's government clearly shows its horror and fear of the people, as if facing a deadly enemy. A modest amount of people, just by walking, have demonstrated the people's power, and the government's response has revealed its weaknesses to the world." For 6 March, protesters were urged to "either gather near fast-food restaurants, take a stroll, or eat at the restaurants, ... nd orderset meal No3 at the McDonald's and the KFC".

February 2011

20 February

The Associated Press reported that only "a handful of people" were known to have actively involved in organizing the staging rallies in 13 cities. The ''Globe and Mail'' reported that the 20 February appeal was answered by 200 people at the Beijing rendezvous. There was a similar protest in Shanghai with about 100 participants. An elderly female demonstrator in Shanghai stated: "Our country has no proper legal system, it's a one-party dictatorship, a tyranny, that suppresses the citizens. There is also land eviction. Many people are beaten to death in many land eviction cases." The United States Ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman, Jr., was seen at the protest rendezvous point. Huntsman exchanged a few words with people in Chinese and then his entourage departed the site immediately. US Embassy spokesman Richard Buangan said that Huntsman and family were on their way to a museum and "they immediately left" once they realized what was going on. The Atlantic Wire reports: "that hasn't stopped nationalist Chinese bloggers from using Huntsman's appearance to drum-up conspiracies of a U.S. plot to destabilize China".

27 February

After the police response to the protests on 20 February, the organizers urged the participants not to shout slogans any more, but simply to stroll silently at the respective protest sites. The call to use "strolling" tactics for the 27 February gatherings was made on the Boxun.com website on 22 February. Prior to the planned 27 February gathering in front of a McDonald's restaurant in Beijing, authorities installed metal corrugated fencing outside the restaurant and outside the home of Nobel laureate and dissident Liu Xiaobo. Hundreds of uniformed and plainclothed security staff and volunteers wearing red armbands were pre-emptively stationed at Wangfujing. Their presence disrupted normal shopping and attracted onlookers. Police began to clear the rendezvous area half an hour after the designated assembly time. On 27 February, activists in 2 cities – Beijing and Shanghai – out of the 23 originally suggested responded. Seven people were reportedly arrested in Shanghai and police kept reporters, participants and strollers moving. Since the organisers proposed for protesters to just walk by silently to protest, it was impossible to tell who were protesting and who were just regular strollers on the streets. ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' stated, "while several Chinese people were seen having altercations with the police, there were no signs of actual protests."

Beijing

Several foreign journalists were physically beaten by the police, with many others physically pushed by the police, their cameras confiscated and footage deleted. ''

'' gave an eyewitness account of an incident in Beijing in which

Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and m ...

reporter

Stephen Engle Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

was "grabbed by several security officers, pushed to the ground, dragged along by his leg, punched in the head and beaten with a broom handle by a man dressed as street sweeper." The Foreign Correspondents' Club of China denounced the attack on Engle, and called for journalists' physical safety to be guaranteed by the authorities.

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

Renren The Renren Network (), formerly known as the Xiaonei Network (), is a Chinese social networking service similar to Facebook. Since the word "Jasmine" was forbidden in the Chinese blogosphere, millions of netizens used the term "two conferences" instead, a widely used expression in the official news originally pointing to the two conferences "Fourth Session of the Eleventh National People's Congress" and "Fourth Session of the Eleventh CPPCC" happening in March in Beijing. On 25 February, several foreign journalists were contacted by police and told that they could not conduct interviews without applying for permission. Regulations issued by the Chinese government forbid entry by foreign reporters into the Wangfujing shopping district in Beijing or the People's Park in central Shanghai without a special permit. Enforcement of the new rules on Sunday 28 February resulted in beating of one camera operator and detention of several reporters for several hours before their release and confiscation of their materials. Following calls for a "Jasmine Revolution" on Twitter, Chinese users of Twitter began to notice a number of new accounts, sometimes using the names or images of Chinese democracy activists. Tweets by the new accounts took a hostile position to calls for demonstrations. In late March, Google stated that intermittent problems with

Gmail Gmail is a free email service provided by Google. As of 2019, it had 1.5 billion active users worldwide. A user typically accesses Gmail in a web browser or the official mobile app. Google also supports the use of email clients via the POP and ...

in the PRC constitute "a government blockage carefully designed to look like the problem is with Gmail". ''

PC Mag ''PC Magazine'' (shortened as ''PCMag'') is an American computer magazine published by Ziff Davis. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009. Publication of online editions started in late 1994 and have continued to the present d ...

'' attributed the blockage to the calls for a "Jasmine Revolution" in the PRC.

Other security measures

More than 20 Chinese cities stepped up security measures, with armed forces ordered to stand by in case of emergency. CPC General Secretary and President Hu Jintao delivered a speech in the

Central Party School The Central Party School of the Chinese Communist Party (), commonly known as the Central Party School (), located in Beijing, is the higher education institution which trains Chinese Communist Party (CCP) cadres. As of 2012, it has around 1,6 ...

on 19 February instructing senior management to better manage social problems and internet incitement. Chinese artist

Ai Weiwei Ai Weiwei (, ; born 28 August 1957) is a Chinese contemporary artist, documentarian, and activist. Ai grew up in the far northwest of China, where he lived under harsh conditions due to his father's exile. As an activist, he has been openly c ...

said that there were tight controls on university students to prevent students from participating in protests. He alleged that teachers had received "a certain note ordering them to do their duty, otherwise they will be in trouble, or their school will be in trouble."

Jasmine flower ban

On 10 May 2011, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' reported that Beijing police had banned the sale of jasmine flowers at various flower markets, causing wholesale prices to collapse. Some vendors stated that Beijing police wanted written assurances that no jasmine flowers shall be sold in their stalls. The Guangxi Jasmine Development and Investment Company, organisers of the China International Jasmine Cultural Festival, said that officials cancelled the 2011 summer festival.

Reactions

Domestic

A high level Chinese government official Zhao Qizheng said, on 23 February, that the probability of China having a "Jasmine Revolution" is "preposterous and unrealistic". Premier

Wen Jiabao Wen Jiabao (born 15 September 1942) is a retired Chinese politician who served as the Premier of the State Council from 2003 to 2013. In his capacity as head of government, Wen was regarded as the leading figure behind China's economic polic ...

participated in a

web chat A web chat is a system that allows users to communicate in real-time using easily accessible web interfaces. It is a type of Internet online chat distinguished by its simplicity and accessibility to users who do not wish to take the time to insta ...

on 27 February that

France 24 France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Mo ...

described as an "apparent bid to defuse" the call for weekly gatherings. In the webchat, he promised to deal with inflation, corruption, lack of housing, property speculation. '' The Financial Times'' (FT) claimed that the web chat was "announced abruptly late on 6 Februaryand appeared to be timed to coincide with the planned protests." It added that with the web chat, "state media blanketed the nation over the internet, television and radio on Sunday morning with two hours of remarks by Wen Jiabao". China News said that the webchat had been planned in advance; similar webchats had taken place on 20 June 2008 and 27 February 2010.

Wu Bangguo's five "No's"

Addressing the meeting of the National People's Congress, its chairman Wu Bangguo dismissed any notion of political reform, saying that Western-style democracy would have dire consequences, and that any loosening of the Party's hold on power could undermine stability and risk domestic strife, and he also advocated the five "no's" – no multi-party election; no diversified guiding principles, no separation of powers, no federal system, and no privatization".Shi Jiangtao (11 Mar 2011). "Beijing slams door on political reform", ''South China Morning Post''

Ching Cheong Ching Cheong (; born in 1949) is a senior journalist with ''The Straits Times''. He is best known for having been detained by the People's Republic of China on allegations of spying for Taiwan. He was imprisoned from April 2005 to February ...

(16 April 2011
"China Prepares for 'War Without Gun Smoke'"
, ''The Jakarta Globe'', Straits Times Indonesia Wu, who belongs to the conservative faction of the leadership, said: "We have made a solemn declaration that we will not employ a system of multiple parties holding office in rotation; diversify our guiding thought; separate executive, legislative and judicial powers; use a bicameral or federal system; or carry out privatisation." Analysts said the warnings were aimed at consolidating the party's power, in reaction to calls for liberal democracy in Egypt, Tunisia, and Libya. On the other hand, the more liberal Wen Jiabao said that economic and political reform, safeguarding social equity and justice were major factors behind China's success. He also rejected comparisons with Egypt and Tunisia, and reiterated his support for greater democracy and public supervision, saying economic development alone could not solve the problems of the mainland's development.

International

''Time'' suggested that though there are many similarities between the complaints voiced by the people in Arab Spring and those voiced by the Chinese people, the state's tighter grip on the country's media, Internet and other communication forums pose difficulties for anyone trying to organise mass demonstrations. ''The Wall Street Journal'' said that the online protest appeal could cause concern among

Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

leaders, as other uprisings against authoritarian governments elsewhere could impact China.

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

journalist Eunice Yoon and her news crew headed out to Wangfujing to cover the "response to anonymous calls on the Internet to stage protests and begin a Tunisia-style "Jasmine Revolution" in China", was physically handled by police in Beijing on 27 February at arrival near the protest site. She wrote: "What makes China's treatment of the international press so bewildering is that there had been no protests for us to cover here..... My own experience and those of my colleagues show how incredibly terrified and paranoid the Chinese authorities are of any anti-government movement forming in China." Following the arrests of approximately 15 foreign journalists on 6 March, ''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatew ...

'' described the attempts at organising a "Jasmine Revolution" in China as "the biggest showdown between Chinese authorities and foreign media in more than two decades." ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'' reported that

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

thinks the Chinese government is "scared" of the Arab rising. "They're worried, and they are trying to stop history, which is a fool's errand. They cannot do it. But they're going to hold it off as long as possible."

Taiwan protests

On 24 February, whilst visiting Kaohsiung to discuss economic ties between the People's Republic of China and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

(ROC), Chen Yunlin, Chairman of Mainland China's

Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits The Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS; ; often abbreviated as 海协会 / 海協會) is an organization set up by the People's Republic of China for handling technical and business matters with the Republic of ...

, was mobbed by about 200 protesters at Kaohsiung Harbor. Some protesters threw chrysanthemum flowers at him (as Jasmine flowers were not in season), while others tried to deliver plastic jasmine flowers and juice to him. Earlier, at

Kaohsiung Station Kaohsiung Main Station () is a railway and metro station in Sanmin District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan served by the Taiwan Railways and Kaohsiung Rapid Transit. It is one of four ''special class'' stations, the highest class with the most services. It ...

, Chen had already encountered two groups of demonstrators, one supporting

Taiwanese independence The Taiwan independence movement is a political movement which advocates the formal declaration of an independent and sovereign Taiwanese state, as opposed to Chinese unification or the status quo in Cross-Strait relations. Currently, Tai ...

and another Chinese unification. Police claimed that the groups both numbered about 50 people. About 300

Falun Gong Falun Gong (, ) or Falun Dafa (; literally, "Dharma Wheel Practice" or "Law Wheel Practice") is a new religious movement.Junker, Andrew. 2019. ''Becoming Activists in Global China: Social Movements in the Chinese Diaspora'', pp. 23–24, 33, 119 ...

followers also staged a protest. On 8 March, the Democratic Progressive Party released a strongly worded statement condemning the use of force against participants of the "Jasmine Revolution" in China. The statement urged the government to incorporate values of democracy and human rights into agreements with Beijing when promoting cross-strait ties to encourage "China’s democratic transformation."Vincent Y. Chao (10 Mar 2011)
"DPP condemns China’s crackdown on protesters"
Page 3, ''Taipei Times''

References

External links

"Arab Revolts as Viewed From Beijing"
news analysis by Didi Kirsten Tatlow in ''

'' 23 February 2011
"In China, Strolling for Reform"
opinion by Archer Wang and Scott Savitt in ''

'', 4 March 2011.
"Jasmine stirrings in China: No awakening, but crush it anyway: The government goes to great lengths to make sure all is outwardly calm
, 3 March 2011.

Video coverage

Retrieved 3 March 2011. * ttp://zh.wikipedia.org/zh/File:20110221_美国之音新闻_中国低调报道茉莉花抗议活动.ogg "Chinese Jasmine Revolution", Voice of America, Beijing 21 February 2011 (in Chinese) Retrieved 27 February 2011. {{Portal bar, China, Society 2011 in China Protests in China Chinese Protests Chinese democracy movements China Chinese pro-democracy McDonald's Political repression in China

Protest aims

Initial call

Protest strategy and tactics

February 2011

20 February

27 February

Beijing

Shanghai

Hong Kong

March 2011

6 March

13 March

20 March

Government reaction

Arrests

Censorship